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          Ja'Marr Chase says Bengals face higher expectations due to defensive improvements

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          • Ben BabyJun 2, 2026, 09:27 PM
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              Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN's NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
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          CINCINNATI -- Ja'Marr Chase wasn't shy about letting everyone know the Cincinnati Bengals needed to improve defensively.

          It was so blatantly obvious to Chase last year that he didn't feel the need to explicitly point it out as the Bengals sputtered to a third straight year without a playoff appearance.

          This year at the Pro Bowl Games, Chase said he was not subtle about recruiting players to join the Bengals.

          Whatever the method, it worked. Cincinnati overhauled its defense by adding three notable players -- including defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II. And for a team that was minutes away from winning it all at the end of his rookie season, Chase believes the recent additions on defense put another Super Bowl trip back in the spotlight.

          "At the end of the day, we got to the Super Bowl in '21 and never went back," Chase said Tuesday. "So, expectations have always been high since 2021. But now that we have improved our defense a little more, the expectations have gone up for the defense to show us what they could do."

          The Bengals finished 30th in scoring defense (28.9 points per game) and were last in yards allowed per play (6.2) last season, according to ESPN Research.

          When he was at the Pro Bowl Games in Los Angeles, Chase was eager to sell prospective free agents on playing with the Bengals.

          "I didn't care," Chase said. "Let's go. If you want to sign, let's sign here and let's do it."

          Chase wasn't willing to reveal what exactly his pitch was. But months of being vocal about improving the roster ultimately culminated in a series of moves, punctuated by arguably the most aggressive in franchise history -- trading the 10th overall pick in this year's draft to the New York Giants for Lawrence, a three-time Pro Bowler and one of the game's best interior defensive linemen.

          Chase, like everyone else, was surprised that Cincinnati's front office was able to swing the deal to add Lawrence to the defensive line. To Chase and to many inside Cincinnati's locker room, it was a massive vote of confidence in this year's team.

          "The moves they made are showing us they want to be with us, too," Chase said. "They want to push us and help us be at the next level where we know we could be at, that we know we needed."

          Chase was one of the last members of this year's team to arrive for offseason workouts. Backup quarterback Joe Flacco and cornerback DJ Turner II were among those who joined Cincinnati for the start of Phase III and OTAs.

          As the Bengals prep for a pivotal season, Chase said he's fixated on team goals over the individual accomplishments that have marked his first five seasons in the league.

          And he wasn't the only one to express that sentiment Tuesday.

          "I feel like we did everything we needed to do [when it comes to] personal accolades," Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins said. "Now, we've got to win championships. That's the main goal."